Levan Makashvili won the CFFC featherweight title on Saturday
night. | Keith Mills/Sherdog.com

No matter the sport, the game of prognostication with prospects is
always a questionable one.

For every Peyton Manning there’s a Ryan Leaf, Tim Couch, or
Matt
Bush. But when that prospect actually hits, the results can be
a sight to behold.
Cage Fury Fighting Championships 35 saw several rising stars
take significant steps in their mixed martial arts careers at the
Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa in Atlantic City New Jersey on
Saturday night.

Heading into his featherweight title bout with Scott
Heckman, Levan
Makashvili had only three professional bouts to his name. But
his style is such that the Rockville Center, N.Y., native is one of
the few on the local circuit where constant pressure actually means
constant pressure. Makashvili never stops coming forward in his
fights, and it paid dividends against AMA Fight Club’s Heckman.

Heckman, who captured the 145-pound strap by defeating Jeff Lentz at
CFFC 31, was had his hands full all night. Makashvili cut his eye
open in the third and finally swarmed on Heckman in the round four,
forcing referee Gasper
Oliver to call off the bout 2:30 into the period. After the
fight ,Makashvili said that anger served as his primary motivation
in the fight.

“I was actually mad from the beginning for one reason. I really
don’t like hearing people talk crap about me,” Makashvili said.
“That upset me. I never degraded him. When he chose to degrade me
it upset me. When he took me down in the first round that upset me.
No matter what the truth always comes out in here.”

It’s been two years since Jonavin
Webb made his pro debut inside a CFFC cage. After earning his
six straight win – a unanimous verdict (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) over
Mike
Winters -- the man known as “Spyder” now has an opportunity to
fight for the vacant CFFC welterweight belt in his next bout.

“It’s awesome,” Webb said. “It’s one of the best regional
promotions in the country. To be the champion here, it’ll be a big
honor for me to hold that belt. I’m happy they’re giving me that
chance.”

Despite his current hot streak, Webb understands that he’s far from
a finished product. “I learned I can’t finish every fight. There’s
tough guys out there,” he said. “I need to get better and better
every fight. I have some things I need to work on with my coaches,
but I felt great out there tonight. Everyone saw that my standup
game wasn’t that great. I’ve been working a lot of hours in the
boxing gym. I felt it today. It’s going to take time to keep
working on it.”

Former “TUF” contestant Jimmie
Rivera made his CFFC debut a successful one, as he outpointed
Cody
Stevens for his eighth consecutive win. All three judges scored
the fight 30-27 in favor of the Bellator and WSOF veteran.

“The next step right now is to work on getting the finishes --
whether it’s a knockout or a submission,” Rivera said. “The UFC
wants to see finishes. They want to see knockouts. They want to see
exciting fights. I hope to make every fight an exciting fight even
if it’s a decision. When I start finishing people then I could
start opening up that [UFC] door again.”

Although he was unable to get a finish on Saturday, Rivera did take
solace in the improvement in his striking.

“I still need more work on my hands. My biggest thing is to believe
in them. My coach tells me all the time. I just listened today,” he
said. “I have to perfect it a bit more to go and get that finish. I
finally feel like I did something right because I was throwing my
hands. He sees and believes that I have good hands. It was a big
change working my hands the whole time.”

Elsewhere, Bellator veteran Darrell
Horcher captured a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
over Demian Maia
MMA product Gabriel
Miglioli. Horcher racked up the points on the feet and held his
own on the ground to get the nod from the cageside judges.

Jamelle
Jones, a high school wrestling teammate of Olympic gold
medalist Jordan Burroughs, held off Charles
Gamble down the stretch to capture a unanimous decision (30-27,
30-27, 29-28). A couple of big scoop slams by Jones highlighted the
first round, but he seemed to lose steam over the bout’s final 10
minutes. However, Gamble couldn’t take advantage.